Re-Elect Al D'Amato

by Michael Aronowitz, President, Log Cabin Republicans New York

October 15, 1998

(New York, NY) – Many people remember the debate when President Bill Clinton put
forth the notion that gays should be allowed to serve in the military --
and we all know how that ended up. But do we remember that while Democrat
Sam Nunn led the fight against such a policy, Republican Alfonse D'Amato
stood before the full Senate in January 1993 -- one of the first of either
party -- and declared his belief that gays could and should be allowed to
serve our country?

D'Amato was not running for re-election in 1993. He was simply standing up
for his belief that gays and lesbians deserve to be treated equally and
fairly. D'Amato, over many years, has continued to show his commitment to
equality for the gay and lesbian community.

Let's look at a partial list of his solid record: He consistently practices
non-discrimination policies within his federal office. He was an original
co-sponsor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. He led the battle to
increase funding for the Ryan White Care Act and the AIDS Drug Assistance
Program. He strongly denounced the hate-filled comments against our
community by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and other Republican
leaders. He played an instrumental role in securing a Senate vote on openly
gay candidate Fred Hochberg's nomination to head the Small Business
Administration. He called upon the Senate leadership to allow a vote on Jim
Hormel's nomination for Ambassador of Luxembourg.

I don't believe that much more can be said about his commitment to our
community. Indeed, he has received high ratings from the Human Rights
Campaign. Based on their criteria, D'Amato has earned and should receive
their endorsement. Although the national gay organization is under
extraordinary pressure from liberal, leftist interests, we hope they will
stay the course and offer the deserved endorsement of Senator D'Amato's
proven friendship over the many years.

But if the gay amd lesbian community cannot recognize D'Amato's
long-standing record on behalf of the gay and lesbian community, it will be
a travesty. We will continue to send a message that no matter what
Republicans do for our community, the activist community will never
acknowledge or endorse them. This is a recipe for a failed civil rights
movement and is currently evidenced by the lack of real legislative
progress that gays and lesbians have achieved in the fight for equal rights
to date. If the gay and lesbian community continues to ignore the
accomplishments of Republicans on behalf of our community, we will never
achieve civil rights.
The time has come to ask a number of fundamental questions regarding the
direction of our movement. Have we served ourselves well by consistently
attacking and vilifying the Republican party? Have we truly earned any
significant legislation from Democrats during their tenure of leadership?
The answer to both questions is no.

Republican leadership on a number of matters has been extraordinarily
important to our community. While we have waited for leadership from the
White House, Republican leaders in the Congress increased funding for the
much needed AIDS Drugs Assistance Program and Ryan White Care Act and
streamlined the FDA Drug approval process. D'Amato was instrumental on both
of these issues.

If we do not support Senator D'Amato, and return him to his leadership
position in the Senate, the gay and lesbian community will have lost a
powerful voice of support in a Congress controlled by Republicans. It is
important that we continue to re-elect Republicans who have the courage to
stand up against their own Republican leadership. D'Amato has consistently
fought for equal and fair treatment of gays and lesbians and communicated
that it is not inconsistent with Republican ideals to support individual
liberties for all people.

Is the Republican party the harbinger of good will toward the gay
community? Not at this time, yet D'Amato has been and will continue to be a
significant voice in the Senate Republican leadership. He will continue to
call upon his fellow senators to respect the principle of individual
liberty that the Republican Party was founded upon. Let's show our
gratitude and recognition of D'Amato's consistent, and long held support,
by thanking him with our vote in November.